How to Prepare Your Roof for Nasty Weather

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By Kristie Raburn
User-Submitted Article

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A storm on the horizon can mean costly repairs to your roof.

Every fall and winter, we hide in our homes when the wind picks up and the rain falls down. To keep you and your home safe from the nasty weather, there are a few basic steps you should perform to keep your roof on your house, and not in your neighbor’s yard.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

A Ladder
A Roof
An Inspector

Step 1

Climb on the roof and physically inspect it. If you are not able to climb on the roof, hire an inspector to do it for you. Many roof problems cannot be seen from the ground. Someone needs to physically search the roof for soft spots, loose shingles, rotted wood or evidence of critter damage.
Step 2

Clean the rain gutters and downspouts of debris. Keeping your rain gutters and downspouts clean will prevent clogs and will allow the water to drain off the roof properly. Improperly installed gutters can lead to wood rot, water damage and other costly repairs. Direct the rain water so it leads into a rain barrel, where you can recycle the water for other uses, or make sure the ground splash does not allow the water to puddle near the building.
Step 3

Remove all wasp nests, old bird nests and squirrel nests you may find. Wild animals and insects can damage a roof in just a few months’ times. If you find animals have built a home in your chimney, call a trained animal rescue team to come and remove the animal. Wild animals are very unpredictable when they are forced from their homes and the animal rescue team will safely capture the creature and move the animals to a location so they don’t just move back in when all the ruckus is over.
Step 4

Make sure your chimney has a spark arrestor installed. Roof fires are often started by sparks flying up the chimney and landing on the roof, right next to the chimney. The open air allows the spark to burn on any debris on the roof, including any wooden shingles. Always check the chimney before you burn the first fire of the season and install a spark arrestor screen. Not only will it keep the sparks in the fireplace where they belong, but a spark arrestor screen also helps keep the wild animals out.
Step 5

Make sure your chimney and vent pipes have storm flashing installed. Water damage to an attic from water seeping down the sides of a chimney or vent pipe is a leading cause of wood rot in attic spaces and roof timbers. Vent pipes are usually on the roof, directly above the bathroom and are there to let gases escape from the home. If either the vent pipe or the chimney flashing is improperly sealed, the roof can be damaged and you may never know it until a large storm comes through your area or you find a leak in your ceiling.

Comments

djackman said

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on 10/7/2009 Excellent advice for preparing your roof for nasty weather, we are getting into that season here in PA thanks for the tips 5* and reecommended

godfather25 said

on 9/3/2009 Very nice tips on preparing your roof for nasty weather.

goldiec said

on 8/27/2009 Great article on How to Prepare your Roof for Nasty weather. We just removed a wasp nest from our roof and last winter a silver squirrel got in the back roof! LOL

on 8/27/2009 Great article on how to Prepare your roof for Nasty weather! We just removed a wasp nest from our roof and sometimes silver squirrels get in our back roof believe it or not! 5*